In commercial grade building construction, it is common to employ a multi-layered wall construction in which vertical steel studs are covered with an external sheathing layer, over which a series of metal Z-channels are installed with rigid insulation panels between them to define an external insulation layer, over which another series of metal channels (e.g. hat-channels) are then installed as furring to support the final exterior cladding layer at a spaced distance from the underlying insulation layer in order to create a rainscreen, whereby the resulting air space between the cladding and the insulation space allows drainage and evaporation to occur. This construction method is material and time intensive, requiring installation of the sheathing, addition of the Z-channels thereto, insertion of the insulation between the Z-channels, subsequent mounting of the hat-channels, and finally installation of the exterior cladding. In addition, each Z-channel creates a thermal bridge across the insulation layer over the full length of the channel, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the insulation layer.
Applicant has developed a new furring product and new resulting steel wall construction that addresses the forgoing shortcomings of the forgoing conventional steel wall construction technique.